Miraculous Ladybug: The New Holders

Volpina: Part Fourty-Two

Alya felt eager to go to sleep. She didn't exactly know why, but she had a feeling Eliza was waiting for her. Alya wanted to see her again, too.

Once she had finally drifted into sleep, Alya saw her feeling was right.

There she was, standing there alone.

"Eliza!" Alya exclaimed, running towards her.

Eliza turned around, but this time Alya didn't flinch. She wasn't afraid of how Eliza may have looked anymore, for now she knew it wasn't permanent.

Alya stopped when she was close enough to Eliza for her mutilated corpse to reanimate to look as she once had.

Eliza smiled. "Ciao, Tesorino. What took you so long?"

Alya giggled a bit. "Sorry, I was so excited to see you again that I couldn't fall asleep!"

Eliza laughed. "Oh, Alya, you're so funny!"

"I hope you weren't waiting long.."

Eliza shook her head dismissively. "That does not matter, my sweet. You are here now. And while you're here, let's dance!"

"Dance?"

Eliza's eyes brightened. "When I lived in Italy, dancing was my passion. Being as nimble and light-footed as I was as a dancer even helped me as Volpina!" She thought for a minute. "Although, I suppose I could've just flown. But where's the fun in that?" Eliza paused and saw Alya's confused expression. "Oh, Alya, don't tell me you don't know how to dance!"

Alya reddened. "I-I know how to dance!"

Eliza's eyes held a silent challenging look in them. "Show me!"

"I will!"

Alya had learned the tango while living in Martinique from an Argentinian cousin of hers, and while she certainly wasn't as good as her cousin, Alya could tango fairly well. Alya led the dance and Eliza followed, with Alya giving small directions and tips here and there to Eliza, who had never actually tangoed before.

After what felt like an hour of the two dance partners tangoing, they decided to stop and catch their breath.

Alya, panting hard, smirked to Eliza. "Who doesn't know how to dance now?"

Eliza chuckled. "Okay, I admit it. You sure can tango, mio tesorino."

Alya tilted her head a bit. "What does that mean? Tesorino, I mean."

Eliza considered this. "It can mean treasure, or darling, or something like that." She smiled playfully. "It certainly isn't an insult, if that's what you're wondering."

"I didn't think it was." Alya chuckled.

Eliza's smile faded, and she grew a bit sad. "I wish it could be like this always. Laughing with you, dancing with you..."

Alya felt disheartened to see her like this. "W-why can't it?"

"I am dead, Alya, and nothing can bring me back. You still have a long life ahead of you, and I would never let you take it away just for me. The simple fact is that no matter how much I love you, or you love me, I am not to be with you. You have a destiny that I am not to be a part of, a soulmate who is not me waiting for you. This cannot last, I still need to ascend to meet whatever awaits me up there, and I'm sure my parents are waiting as well."

Alya waited a moment before she knew how to reply. "Well, even if it won't last forever... I'd still like to spend what time I can with you." Alya reached a hand out to touch Eliza's chin lightly. "If I can still be with you, I want to. Even if we can never really be together, we can still treasure these times. Times spent laughing and dancing, even in the face of an uncertain future."

Eliza took Alya's hand and gripped it gently. "Then I'd be delighted to be with your for whatever time I have left here. Would it be wrong of me to assume you've decided on whether or not you wish this to be real?"

Alya shook her head. "No, nothing wrong about that. I have decided-"

Suddenly, the white background of Alya's dreamscape began to crumble, with black cracks spreading throughout it like water overflowing from a stream. Eliza looked panicked, and a bit threatened.

"What's happening?!" Alya cried.

Eliza turned to face her. "I sense two alien presences intruding, or rather, attempting to intrude in your dreamscape. I'll deal with this, you go!" Eliza quickly kissed Alya's forehead.

Alya sat up in bed, sweating heavily. "What-" Then she realized she was awake again. "No!!" Alya punched her pillow frustratedly.